Five Ways Alexandra Cabot Could Have Been Reunited With Olivia Benson
by sciencekitty
Summary: Five ways the reunion between Alex and Olivia could have happened. Olivia/Alex.


**One.**

The reunion is nothing like Alex imagined. It's quieter and there are no tears and Olivia still hasn't kissed her. They're standing at baggage claim and Elliot backs away, giving the two women their space all while keeping a close eye on his partner, who looks like she might faint. They stand in silence as Alex's bags come circling around and she grabs them, lifting them off the conveyor belt and onto the floor beside her. Getting a good grip, she begins to pull them toward the detective when Olivia's ever-present chivalrous side kicks into high gear and she gallantly bounds forward and reaches for the handles, their hands brushing each other as Alex lets them go.

They walk in silence for a few moments before Alex feels frustration overtake her. She throws caution to the wind and leans close to Olivia, purring a suggestive _why thank you, Detective_ into the other woman's ear and it's all it takes for the brunette to loosen up and nudge her into a secluded corner. She drops the bags, pushes Alex up against a wall and kisses her hungrily. The blonde grins, thinking, _well now that's more like it,_ and reaches for the brunette's hips, slipping her fingers through the jean's belt loops and tugging her closer.

Elliot catches up eventually, finding them still entangled in each other and more than a little disheveled. He can't hide his smirk and comments _it's about damn time_.

Alex rolls her eyes and Olivia jovially throws _bite me, El _at his back as he walks away.

They hear him laugh, the comforting rumble that they both know and love, before he says he'll meet them at the car.

**Two.**

The squad is giving off a predictable hum of activity when she walks in without warning and waits. For a group of seasoned detectives, it takes them a while to notice to notice her presence, and she makes a mental note to tease them about it later.

It's Fin that looks toward her first and he grins as he jumps out of his desk chair and strides toward her.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in. It's Cabot!"

At the sound of her name everyone else looks up and before she knows it she's the center of attention. She accepts hugs and welcomes from the rest of the squad, but they don't keep her long before ushering her toward Olivia and disappearing into the background because they already know. Even when they thought they were so good at hiding it, everyone already knew.

The first thing Alex notices is that Olivia's hair is longer. The second thing she notices is that Olivia is a little softer, a little rounder and looks more stereotypically girly than Alex has ever known her to be and Alex, a little unfairly if she's honest with herself, briefly wonders what happened to the sexy butch cop she used to know.

"Hey," Olivia says quietly, looking at Alex with uncharacteristic shyness. "You're back for good, huh?"

Alex's mouth is dry and she doesn't respond right away because she doesn't know this Olivia with the tired eyes and the ponytail and the defeated demeanor. Her Olivia, the one still in her head, is strong, full of fire and so deliciously stubborn that Alex used to find herself within seconds of ripping the other woman's clothes off whenever they argued.

Undeterred, the detective reaches for a strand of Alex's hair. It's brown now, her natural color. She'd stopped dyeing it after they'd made her leave Olivia for the second time and she was desperate to control _something_ in her life. She needed to show them that there were some decisions that were still up to her. She's still not sure what it says about her that the only thing she could think to change about herself was her hair color.

"Do you like it?" she finds herself asking, suddenly self-conscious.

Olivia's eyes sparkle just then, and before Alex knows it she's leaned back in the brunette detective's arms and she's being kissed in full view of the whole room. When they break apart, far too soon for Alex's taste, everyone around them is pretending they're not grinning and she even thinks she hears some soft applause. She must look stunned because Olivia laughs that gorgeous laugh of hers and asks simply, "We've already lost enough time, don't you think?"

Alex nods her agreement and grins. They've both changed, but she's still Alex and Olivia is still the woman she loves and she's not sure how, but she suddenly knows that everything is going to be just fine.

**Three.**

She's been back for a few weeks, settling into her new job and gathering her bearings. She still hasn't gotten used to the idea that she's really home, that she's here for good, that she can begin to put down roots again if she wants to.

Truthfully, she's still expecting to be taken out by a bullet whenever she walks outside.

She's alone in her new office one evening when the phone rings and she picks up, unprepared for the onslaught that comes.

"Cabot"

"What the hell is the matter with you?"

Elliot Stabler, and he's angry. Quite frankly, she doesn't really blame him.

She takes in a breath, holds it for a moment, releases it.

"Detective Stabler," she says coolly, "is there something you need?"

"You came back and you didn't even call her?"

She closes her eyes and feels her heart twist.

"Elliot," she says quietly, and because she can't think of anything else to say, goes silent.

His voice is softer when he speaks next, his tone almost resigned.

"She thought she saw you this morning," he pauses, "and _Jesus_, Alex, she's always seeing you and so I thought…I thought she was wrong and then we found out you really _are_ back and…Alex, the look on her face when she found out…" he trails off.

Alex rubs at her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. She doesn't know how to tell him that she's afraid, that's it been too long and she's not the same person and that she jumps at every noise she hears, convinced she's about to die.

She can't tell him that she's convinced she's changed so much that Olivia would have no interest in her anymore, that Olivia would be disgusted by the person she's become. She doesn't know how to say that it's just easier to stay away and pretend the other woman doesn't exist rather than to face impending rejection after all this time.

"She's waiting for you," he assures softly, interpreting her silence correctly.

Alex's throat feels tight when she tells him she has to go. She hangs up before he can say another word and rests her elbows on her desk, her head in her hands. Then, gathering up all her courage, she grabs the receiver and dials the cell phone number she still knows by heart.

"Benson"

"Hi," Alex says and immediately cringes. _You couldn't come up with something better than that?_

"Alex," Olivia breathes her name and the blonde feels her heart pounding nervously.

"Can we talk, Liv?"

Silence. Alex is just about to apologize for bothering her and hang up when Olivia speaks again, sounding a bit wary.

"Sure, Alex. I was just about to order Chinese. Have you eaten yet?"

Alex releases a breath and inexplicably feels all her fears melting away.

"No, I haven't. That sounds great, Liv." She pauses. "Thank you."

She can practically hear the brunette detective smile.

"No problem, Alex," she says warmly, "I'll see you soon."

**Four.**

When the only person who comes to meet her is Elliot, she can't help it when her mind instantly jumps to every horrible conclusion she can think of.

_She's dead, she's dead, she's dead. Shooting? Stabbing? Car accident? Cancer? She's gone and I'm never going to see her again. Oh my God, what am I going to do?_

He must see the panicked look in her eyes because he soothes her before she can ask, hugging her and whispering, "She's fine, Alex. I promise. She's in court. She'll be done soon."

They walk out of the airport in silence, neither of them knowing what to say or where to start. She senses that she's missed a lot during the time she's been away and wants to catch up on all of it, but the only thing on her mind right now is seeing Olivia.

Then they're in the car and he's nervous when he tells her, "We, uh….we didn't tell her you were back. We kind of wanted to surprise her."

So Alex ends up pacing back and forth across one of the interrogation rooms while Elliot talks Olivia into following him in there under the pretense of wanting to talk to her about a case. She opens the door and walks in ahead of him. She spots Alex and stops cold, not even noticing her partner slip out and close the door behind him.

"Oh," is all Olivia says as her eyes fill with tears, staring at the woman in front of her like she's going to disappear all over again. "Oh, _Alex_"

Alex doesn't waste another second before she closes the distance between them and gathers the brunette into her arms. They stand there for a few minutes, the blonde rubbing circles on Olivia's back until she feels like she has to say something.

"I'm back," she states the obvious feebly, and Olivia laughs as she pulls away and wipes the tears out of her eyes.

"I can see that," she answers, amused.

There's an awkward silence before Olivia rolls her eyes.

"So, dinner? Or do you have other plans?"

Alex smiles gratefully. "I'm all yours."

Olivia arches an eyebrow and steps close again, invading Alex's personal space. "You sure about that?"

She nods wordlessly, suddenly feeling her face flush.

Olivia kisses her.

Alex kisses back.

**Five.**

She's only been away for about a year when her doorbell finally rings exactly the way she's been imagining it would and everything that she's been wishing for finally comes true.

She rushes to the door and looks through the peephole and can't turn the knob fast enough.

Olivia stands on her porch, as breathtaking a vision as ever. She's wearing jeans, a tight black top and the leather jacket that Alex loves. The former ADA is so stunned she can't speak, but Olivia does it for the both of them when she runs a hand through her short dark hair and gives Alex a nervous half smile.

"So, are you ready to come home yet?"

Alex is still grinning when she wakes up and rolls over, expecting to find the brunette detective asleep beside her. Instead, she crashes back to reality when instead of Olivia, she finds her Wisconsin claims adjuster still passed out with his arm hanging off of the bed.

She backs away from him so quickly that her foot gets caught in the comforter and she crashes to the carpet. A glance at the bed tells her that he hasn't woken up and Alex barely makes it to the bathroom before she vomits, the realization that she's still Emily and she's still thousands of miles away from Olivia too much for her to handle. She flushes the toilet, rinses out her mouth and lowers herself onto the now closed toilet seat. Nudging the bathroom door shut with her foot so as not to wake the sleeping man in the next room is her last coherent thought before she buries her head in her arms and sobs.


End file.
